Canada to deport family of trafficking ring victim

Please write to support this family today!

Dear Friends,We are writing about a survivor of trafficking in Canada who needs your urgent support. Tibor Baranyai is currently fighting the deportation of his wife and step-daughter back to Hungary, scheduled for this Friday, October 19th.You can take action by contacting:Minister Vic Toews, https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/abt/min-eng.aspxand Minister Jason Kenney, Minister@cic.gc.caPlease see below for a suggested message.Thank you very much for your attention.

BackgroundMr. Baranyai is one of 23 victims who were sold as slaves in Hungary, and purchased by a criminal network operating in Canada. The slaves lived under restrictive conditions in Hamilton, and were forced to work without pay in the construction industry as well as denied adequate food, medical care, and adequate shelter. The men were beaten, and the traffickers threatened to harm family members if the victims did not comply. Mr. Baranyai was recognized as a victim of trafficking by Canada and provided instrumental support in the investigation of the largest human trafficking case in Canadian history, Project Opapa, which resulted in multiple arrests and convictions. However, his wife and step-daughter will now be deported because their original claim, which was based on their circumstances prior to meeting Mr. Baranyai, was refused. His wife has now applied to remain in Canada under Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds, based on the fear of facing retribution by her husband’s traffickers upon return. Notably, the family also requested that Tibor’s financial and emotional dependency on them, as a trafficking survivor, be taken into account when considering their departure from Canada. Their fear is based on the fact that other victims’ family members have been systematically attacked and killed in Hungary as a consequence of the prosecution of the country’s largest human trafficking ring. Despite this newer and very real risk, their request for a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRRA) based on new information has been denied.This case clearly illustrates continuing gaps in the implementation of Canada’s legal measures to protect trafficked persons. Providing full protection to people recognized as victims of trafficking in persons must include extending protection to the immediate family members in Canada and abroad who will otherwise be at risk as a result of their relationship with the survivor.

Please see also this article by Adrian Morrow in the Globe and Mail:http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/canada-to-deport-family-of-trafficking-ring-victim/article4622266/++++Mr. Baranyai’s appeal:My name is Tibor Baranyai. I was brought to Canada as a victim of human trafficking. In Canada my life has been destroyed - I was sold for less than a $1000, made to live and work as a slave. I was denied food, sleep, medical care. The traffickers beat other victims, and threatened me with death.I managed to escape, and agreed to support the police and the Crown. The traffickers hired an assassin – someone I knew from Hungary – to come to Canada and kill us…the victims, the police, and the lead lawyer. I identified this man for the police, because I knew him as a hit man in Hungary. He is still free in Hungary today.Until I met my wife, Ildiko, my spirit had not been able to rest in Canada. I had to move 5 times in Ontario, because the traffickers kept finding me. The threats and violence have affected me very much. I have heart problems, anxiety, and cannot sleep at night. I was a strong man once, but my experience has left me ruined. I cannot go back to Hungary, even to visit, or they will kill me. I am constantly afraid that they will find me again. I cannot work due to my bad mental and physical health, so my wife supports me. She is the only thing I have in this world. She will be a target if she is sent back. My wife and step daughter are now in danger.The traffickers beat the father of another victim, and the father of another victims was found dead at his house. They went after another victim's entire family – threatened to kill them, and burn their house down. Three children and parents. The police in Hungary could not protect, so the police drove the family to the airport, and the family is now in Canada. If they can't find us, the traffickers will make us pay by harming the people we love.I lost my country. I lost my community. I lost my health. Please, please don’t take away my family.I want to say that I feel used. The traffickers used me for my labour, Canada used me as a witness to get a prosecution. But both Canada and the traffickers would deny me the basic thing I need as a human – to be loved, to love, and be supported by a family that I can see and touch. Canada is now trying to deny safety to those I love.Is this how Canada supports survivors of human trafficking? Please don’t victimize me again. Allow my wife and step daughter to remain in Canada with me.++++Suggested messageDear Minister,I am writing to ask you to intervene in the removal of Ildiko Dellamario, wife of human trafficking survivor Tibor Baranyai, and her step-daughter Idiko Nagy, until a decision is made on their applications for permanent residency. Their deportation is scheduled for October 19th, 2012. As family members of a trafficking survivor they are at great risk of facing reprisals by Mr. Baranyai’s traffickers if returned to Hungary. This very real risk is supported by the recent systematic threats and attacks received by other victims’ family members in Hungary by people affiliated with the criminal network as a consequence of the prosecution of Canada’s largest human trafficking ring. I commend the federal government for recognizing, in the National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking, the vulnerability of victims and their family members. Specifically, the Plan recognizes that the victims may have particular concern that their family members may be harmed or threatened if they come forward or cooperate with law enforcement authorities. The federal government has also recognized the specific vulnerability of victims of human trafficking, and the need for additional support within Canada. I therefore ask you urgently to intervene in order to defer the removal until a decision is made on the applications for permanent residency so that Mr. Baranyai can continue to be supported - both financially and emotionally - by his immediate family.Thank you for your consideration.Sincerely,(Signature)